Don't tell me you're giving up on me now
by TheRealQueenOfEngland
Summary: Nancy and Frank are investigating a human trafficking ring and battling their growing feelings for each other.
1. Chapter 1

The cast was uncomfortable. It was a sticky, overcast, warm July late afternoon and he was cursing his brilliant idea to pass up his brother's offer. Joe had offered to do the stakeout if Frank would stay in the air conditioned office and go through the files they had found. Frank had felt himself bristling to them trying to baby him again. He had had much worse injuries than a broken arm and the heat of the summer was causing him to lash out more than usual. He knew that he was being stubborn and there was no reason for him to try to prove himself- they all knew what he was capable of. He hated feeling crippled. Shaking off his pity party he used his good hand to fish through his backpack for the bottle of water he had thrown in there, the ice having long melted. The drink he took brought some refreshment and distraction from his itchy arm until movement caught his eye. He sat up straight in the Buick he was using to stakeout his suspect and reached behind his seat to hit the knee of the long, slender figure lounging across the seats, laptop out and headphones in. "We have movement?" she asked, suddenly alert, simultaneously shutting her laptop and pulling out her headphones.

"Buckle up Drew, it's about to get real"

Throwing the car into drive he stealthily pulled into the busy road behind the gaudy yellow jaguar their perp had gotten into. The tall man had been a tough target to track all week and the way he was driving was meant to shake a tail if he had one. Frank grinned to himself, he loved a challenge. Snaking in and out of traffic he kept his target in his sights, accurately predicting his next moves. He was so invested in the chase that he didn't notice Nancy climbing over the front seat until a sharp corner almost deposited her in his lap, at that moment his mind became a jumble of hard to control thoughts as he was overwhelmed by everything from the smell of her perfume to the feel of her soft skin on his arm to, unfortunately, the view of her bottom right in his face as she tried to uncurl herself from where the corner had thrown her. "What are you doing?!" he yelped, all hope of having a suave or even dignified response out the window with his flurry of thoughts and feelings

"Oh come on," she charmed, finally righting herself and laughing "you can't expect me to contain myself to the backseat for this- this could be it!"

She had no idea what that smile was doing to his stomach, her strawberry blond hair flying in a fragrant halo around her beautiful mouth- "FRANK WATCH OUT!"

Her cry brought him to his senses long enough to narrowly avoid slamming into the car that had pulled between them and their target.

"Who taught you how to drive?!"

"Who taught me how to drive?! Who taught you how to SIT IN A MOVING CAR!? Next time just stay in the front like I suggested in the first place, you weirdo…"

"I'm sorry that it's a MILLION DEGREES and I didn't want to sit in the front and listen to you complain about being hot for another hour!"

"OH so you're okay with letting ME roast in the hot sun in the front because I don't like being hot? Do you know how ridiculous that sounds?"

"We've been together for 24 hours a day for almost 9 days now excuse me for wanting some me time"

"You're a professional, Drew, you get me time when we solve-"

"Frank!" she said, grabbing his good arm.

Their short argument was brought to a halt as they watched their guy pull into a storage unit and get out of his car. The pair turned to each other and grinned, the argument long forgotten. This _was_ it.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: **So this is my first fanfic ever- sorry if I'm not following the usual etiquette- all suggestions are hugely appreciated! also for context, I'm keeping purposefully a little vague and trying only to write the things they would care about in the moment, but it will all become clear soon :)**

The sun was close to setting as they climbed out of the Buick and started to gear up out of the trunk. Nancy turned to Frank to strategize when her words caught in her throat. The heat didn't do most guys any favours but of course it had the opposite effect on Frank Hardy. The sweat had slightly curled his thick brown hair and the amount of times he had run his hands through it had made it look like it had been styled back, accentuating both his height and his jawline. The sun had broken through the clouds as it went down and now its rays glistened over his muscles as he tightened his bullet proof vest. Nancy was all of a sudden very aware that Frank Hardy had grown into a man, and cast or no cast he was built. He looked up at her from trying to strap on a leg holster, one handed, cheeks ruddy from the heat, and a small smile crinkling the corner of his eyes as his chocolate ones met her blue. "Don't tell me you're giving up on me now, Drew- you look freaked"

She snapped her open-guppy-mouth shut and shook out her golden mane "I just can't believe we've found where he's keeping them- we could save so many people today, Hardy" She pulled her focus back in, closed her eyes and steadied herself with a breath _Think about Ned, think about Ned_ , _think about Ned_ she repeated over and over in her mind. Then caught herself with a laugh and corrected herself _think about the CASE, think about the CASE…_

"Drew" he said, interrupting her thoughts. She opened her eyes to see him looking like a sad puppy and holding out the leg holster to her. She laughed as he just said "Please?"

Frank shut down the trail of thoughts that had opened the minute his eyes locked on her blue ones. As she strapped his leg holster on he stared at the sky and tried, and failed to keep his mind clear. If he had to he could revisit those thoughts later but for now they had to focus. Also _Ned_ he growled internally, shifting that strange spurt of aggression to the case at hand. He was still fuming at the sky and had not noticed she had finished until she spoke.

"The usual play then?" Nancy asked, trying not to look shaky while weaving her hair into a more practical French braid.

Frank nodded, thankful that they had done this enough times that they could read each other well enough to not worry about what the other's next move was.

Nancy had completed her braid and cocked her gun "let's go then" rushing to the backdoor with Frank on her heels. She tried the door, shook her head, took a step to the left and waited for Frank to pick the lock. He opened it and she stepped into the dark hallway, checked her corner and motioned Frank in. It was so dark with the door shut that if Frank didn't know intuitively where she would be he would have tripped over her. They were going to have to do palm signals if they didn't find a light source- he felt her palm on his fingertips and almost chuckled, she knew him better than he knew himself some days. He found the next corner, took two breaths to listen and gave her the palm signal for all clear. He felt her pass him as she scouted ahead. His palm pressed against her fingertips as he waited at the next corner for her signal. There was a longer than expected pause when she indicated their signal for _people_ and tapped his palm 3 times. He pulled out a small gas bomb and pressed it into her hand, he heard what sounded like the loudest clink as the metal canister hit the rock floor and rolled towards the target- Nancy and Frank both took deep breaths and covered their mouths with their shirts. They heard a rumbling murmur of voices until three distinct crashes ended the sound with silence.

"Let's go" his breath on her neck made her heart flutter for reasons she could not afford to think about. She bit her lip and grabbed his fingertips that were poking out of his cast, frustrated by the strange tickling sensation their signaling brought. They ran holding hands with their bodies low around their corner, seeing a faint light coming from around the next corner- they were almost there. Frank yanked his hand out of Nancy's – it had rendered him so distracted that he had almost not seen the bodies on the floor. With one sideways look Nancy shook it off, an unexplained pit in her stomach accompanying her flutter, both of which she would attribute to nerves.

"HOW DARE YOU"

The sound echoed around Nancy and Frank and they both jumped, they had gotten so used to the silence. Two men's voices were coming from around the bend, evidently they had just opened the door to an office and were in the middle of an argument.

"My men are waiting at the docks now so your options are now or never. Good luck finding another buyer." The tall man from the yellow jaguar had sweat through the business shirt he was wearing and was clearly frustrated. The second voice came from the man concealed in the office in a gravelly purr. "Don't try to pressure me into a bad deal- give me the price we agreed upon, I have risked so much more than you in this by keeping them here."

Nancy saw Franks' brow crinkle in thought – "what?" she mouthed. Frank cocked his ear to listen better and then his eyes popped open in surprise. B-R-I-G-I-T-T-A-B-E-L-M-O-N-T he signed into her palm _Brigitta Belmont._ Nancy's jaw involuntarily dropped- the person in the office was no man. She had known this human trafficking ring was big but Brigitta was a ghost of a name, a disturbingly lethal ghost. Frank had sworn he was close to catching her with Joe almost two years ago in Austria but the trail had gone literally dead as everyone connected to the case was murdered or disappeared. Nancy regretted teasing him about making her up. They both paled a shade and steeled themselves for the hardest fight of their careers. _She could not get away again._


	3. Chapter 3

"you promised me they were all in good health – you might have risked a lot but you did not care about the state of the merchandise and now their value has depleted. That is your own fault- not mine" the man's voice sounded irritated.

Frank checked that all his holsters were accessible and ready for action and was about to check for the all clear from Nancy when her hand grabbed his arm and her voice hissed in his ear "we need to call for backup- no one knows we're here"

The weight of what they almost did hit Frank in the stomach like a hammer- he was rushing headlong into danger and dragging Nancy behind him- if anything happened to her…

He turned his face so they were cheek to cheek and breathed "I'll text Joe"

Nancy crept around him to keep lookout

He tugged on her vest- "what's the address again?" he wasn't from around here.

She turned back and whispered "827 pontiac way, you should send him the name of this place too"

"Scotty's discount storage right?"

"Yeah"

neither of them noticed that the argument had stopped. Frank had just typed '827 PON' when he was hit on the back of the head with some kind of blunt object- hard and the phone dropped to the floor. Nancy had just enough presence of mind to jump on the phone and hit send before a gun was pressed between her shoulder blades. "What did you just do" growled Brigitta. Nancy wordlessly picked up the phone and passed it back to Brigitta. The tall man took the phone and read the text out loud. Inconveniently, a message arrived from Joe at that exact moment that read "?" The tall man laughed – "I'm texting back 'LOL butt-dial, sorry' so nice try you idiots."

"Shut up Wade" hissed Brigitta. "Get up and put your weapons on the floor" Nancy obliged and tried to discreetly turn to see Frank, who had not made a sound in way too long.

Frank's world had erupted into a blinding explosion of stars and sound the minute he was hit in the head. Everything was ringing and the world had yet to right itself when he made eye contact with Nancy who was weaponless and standing with her hands on her head. That familiar feeling in his stomach started the moment their eyes locked. ' _what an inappropriate reaction to this situation_ he mused sleepily, _she's just so beautiful…what if she dies because of me… wait no this feeling's not about_ \- BLEEEECCCHHHGGGG" Frank narrowly missed throwing up all over himself but had turned to face the floor just in time. Pathetically curling over his knees Frank was dragged to stand by the guard that they had missed in the gassing. The guard roughly de-weaponed Frank.

"Im going to give you one chance to tell me who you are and what you're doing here"

"we're selling chocolates so our band can go to regionals would you like to buy some?" the bravado of Frank's quip was undercut by a wince as he was dragged closer to Brigitta and the light of the office.

"I'm glad you think you're funny" Brigitta replied coolly as she turned faster than lightning to backhand Nancy across the face. Nancy gasped in pain as Brigitta's rings dug in and ripped her cheek open.

"LET'S TRY THIS AGAIN" yelled Brigitta, the purr becoming a roar. Wade held Nancy's arms behind her and yanked her back to standing.

Frank felt his chest constrict in rage. How DARE she hit Nancy. He made the mistake of looking at Nancy however; blood was pouring out of the gash on her cheek. He knew that he knew that it was a superficial wound but everything inside of him told him to back off to protect her. "STOP stop okay. We're detectives and we're here to investigate you"

Wade looked visibly disturbed as Nancy looked at Frank aghast- why was he crumbling like this?

"Take them to the office and tie them up" Brigitta ordered. Nancy and Frank were soon bound to chairs in Brigitta's office. The name on the desk read 'Evelyn Stiles'.

"So what was that Hardy- some sort of part of a master scheme? Please tell me that was part of your master scheme" Nancy was all over him as soon as they were alone- he was a professional and they had done this hundreds of times. What happened out there was a rookie mistake; Brigitta's reputation did not bode well for them and getting tied up was not going to increase their odds of survival.

Frank managed a shrug as his head seared with pain.

She noticed the pained shadow cross his face and felt her bewilderment and fury soften "They got you pretty good huh?"

Frank just glared at her. "ya think?"

"Okay, I am actually sorry, anyway we don't have time for this." Nancy jumped right into problem solving mode "We have to assume no one is coming for us. We need to get ourselves out of here. Because I'm super cool my watch actually has a very small pen knife in it so I'm going to work on getting that out… this angle is a struggle. Also dammit they tied each of our arms separately"

They had even gone to the trouble to bind Frank's broken arm to the chair from wrist to bicep, covering his cast in a tangle of rope.

Nancy and Frank quieted down as they heard voices approach the door.

"Are you sure that's not going to cause more trouble?"

"You have to admit it's the best option we've got"

"Fine but I'm not paying extra, they'll probably cause more trouble than they're worth"

Wade burst through the door with a frown on his face, closely followed by Brigitta and two guards. He motioned to Frank "Untie the broken arm"

The shorter of the two guards pulled out a knife and obliged. Wade menacingly pulled a hammer out of a toolbox by the door.

"you're going to tell me EVERYTHING you know."

Frank broke out in a cold sweat. The guard had freed Franks arm and was holding it down, stretched across 'Evelyn's' desk. "Wait…w…wait… what"

"You heard me- start talking" Wade swung the hammer back and forth and started rolling his shoulder, loosening it.

"I don't under-"

A horrific crunch and a terrible scream shot through the air, it took a moment for Frank to realize that scream had come from his own mouth. Wide eyed and shaking he looked at Nancy, who had been gagged by Brigitta without him noticing. Her eyes were wide in horror as she tried to communicate something with her eyes to him. He was beyond the point of being able to understand any kind of message as he looked at Wade, who was smiling at his victim.

"Now, Boy. What do you know"

The rage that Frank had pushed down came bubbling back to the surface. He was going to save both of them. Nancy had been looking at his feet. They were untied! That's what Nancy had been trying to say. Frank cursed his concussion for slowing him down but he pushed powerfully with his legs and knocked the guard holding him clear across the room, his blade flying. Frank stood, and at the same moment Nancy succeeded in cutting one of her hands free and stood. Both were able to wield their chairs like weapons, Nancy immediately knocking Brigitta into the wall and her gun to the ground. Frank had stooped to pick up the knife but his broken hand could barely grip it enough to hold it. "NANCY!" he shouted, she turned and he tossed her the knife. In one swift motion she had cut free her other arm. The knock from the chair had barely winded Brigitta, and she pounced at Nancy's midsection. Both women fell to the ground, and Nancy thanked her judo training as it took over. Brigitta was tough, and had a terrifying reputation for a reason but Nancy was holding her own against the shorter woman.

Frank was quickly becoming frustrated by the chair attached to his only good arm. After he had kicked the guard across the room, who still had not returned to the scuffle, he had jumped between Wade, the guard, and the door. The guard had pulled out his gun but quickly lost it when his arm got slammed by Frank's chair.

With a cry of frustration Frank slammed the chair into the door frame, where it mostly broke, leaving Frank with one leg and half of the back of the seat still attached. to his arm Something flashed in his peripherals and he was just quick enough to duck as the hammer that Wade had still been holding crashed into the wall behind where Frank's head had been. The guard tried to take Frank's distraction as an opportunity to slip past him, but he had underestimated Frank's reflexes.

The guard was unconscious on the ground within seconds as his jaw connected with what was left of the chair.

Brigitta had managed to get the upper hand on Nancy and was straddling her on the floor when Nancy noticed Brigitta's eyes light up. Following her eye line, Nancy felt a rush of fresh adrenaline course through her body as she saw what Brigitta saw

 _The gun was within reach_

Nancy knew that if she didn't get the gun first that would be it for her. She summoned all her strength and then used her leg to hook around Brigitta's torso, just as she was reaching for the gun, and fling her off Nancy and away from the gun. Nancy used her momentum to do an awkward backwards somersault that placed her directly over the gun.

"FREEZE" she shouted. Both guards were still out cold on the floor but both Wade and Brigitta stopped moving and raised their hands.

"Put your hands on the desk" she commanded. They obliged and Wade rubbed a trickle of sweat out of his eyes with his shoulder.

Nancy walked over to Frank and cut the remaining ropes from his arm and as the remains of the chair fell to the ground she placed her gun in his hand and pulled out four pairs of handcuffs, eyes twinkling. "I have an idea" she whispered to Frank

There were two large pillars in the atrium of the building outside the office doors and they were wide enough for two people to stretch their arms around. Nancy and Frank handcuffed their two conscious suspects to each other around the pole and then woke their next two suspects and dragged them groggily to the other pole, where they were also locked in a two-person pole hug.

When they were taken care of, Nancy and Frank went back to the office to try to find where Brigitta had been keeping her victims. While in the office Nancy found Frank's phone and tried to call Joe. Exhaustion hit Frank like a two by four to the gut and he finally felt the full weight of what had happened to his body. Though distracted by trying to get a hold of Joe, Nancy took one look at Frank and pulled him out of the office and into the atrium. She pushed a gun into his good hand, _he couldn't remember putting it down_ , and pulled him to a bench against the wall. "Sit down Hardy, before you fall down" the phone was still against her ear but Joe evidently was not picking up.

He tried to scoff at her but only managed to breathe heavily in her direction

"Hey" she sat next to him, suddenly very concerned and cupped his chin in her hand "you okay? Hey stay with me Hardy, don't tell me you're giving up on me now"

She was joking but there was something uncomfortable in her voice

 _She had the softest hands_

"Open your eyes Hardy"

He didn't realize they had closed

 _Don't worry, Drew, I'm fine_

He heard a clatter- his hands felt so funny

"Hardy! Don't do this to me!"

 _Was that his gun on the floor?_

Nancy's free arm swung around his shoulder as she cradled his head

"You're tougher than this Hardy!"

 _She smells so good- how does she still smell so good?_

He could feel her fingers gently feel around the back of his head. At some point she had put the phone down but he had no idea when that was. She drew her hand back and gasped. He felt her hand frantically pat down the back of his neck and shirt.

"No! NO! Frank I'm so sorry?!"

 _Sorry for what? She was the best partner he had ever had- including Joe. Wow, this was his first time admitting that._

The world tilted and he could feel her holding his head gently. She was bringing him down to the floor but held his head up as she struggled with something

"mpfh!"

She put his head down on something warm and cloth-y feeling but it was thin… HER SHIRT? Frank struggled to open his eyes to see if the great, modest, Nancy Drew had taken off her shirt for him.

 _Wait. Where did his respect go? One bump on the head is not enough to turn Frank Hardy into a disrespectful animal. He would keep his eyes shut. Wait? Weren't they supposed to be open? Didn't Nancy want him to open them?_

He got his answer as Nancy peeled back his eyelids one at a time. Not only did she want his eyes open but she most certainly HAD taken her shirt off. That should be significant to him, but he could not muster enough energy to care.

"Frank" she whispered as something wet hit his cheek. All of a sudden the main front sliding door flew open and light from the streetlights came flooding in, overpowering the soft security lighting that had been lighting the atrium. There was noise coming from all directions and he would have flinched if he wasn't just so tired.

 _Hey, his head had stopped hurting_

"They're here just hold on"

 _Who… what?_

His entire world was reduced to the place where Nancy's hand was trembling on his chest. _Why was it trembling?_

"FRANK!" he thought he heard the voice of his brother ( _wait no that doesn't make sense)_ right before the soft deep dark enveloped him.


	4. Chapter 4

Sorry for the long break- I got a new job that's been eating up my free time

Thanks for your comments- Guest thanks for giving such a thorough review, fully fleshing out thoughts has never been my strength but I will keep your advice in mind:)

* * *

 _Everything was calm._

 _Everything was cold._

 _The world and darkness were the same._

Someone crying.

 _Nothing mattered_

Something warm was on his hand

 _Breathe in breathe out, let go and let it become soft_

Frank felt a tug in a tender place in his heart

 _Darkness was everything._

 _This place was a choice._

 _It's so soft here._

 _He had thought that thought before. Or did he think it a thousand times?_

 _It didn't matter._

 _It was only darkness._

A flash of memory

 _Sunlight breaks through the clouds and becomes even more golden as her hair is tossed in the wind. She is a kaleidoscope of gold_

A terrible pain

 _A knife in the dark, a pinch and a twist, a panic as life flows out_

 _Breathe in breathe out, let it become soft_

 _An invisible hand twisted around his heart_

Something feather soft is on his cheek

 _An imagined future, snow falling, a family around a fire, everything right and good and gold_

But fire is in his head.

He is burning

Breathe in breathe out, this isn't working

The pain doesn't soften

The darkness is steeped in light

He can barely move his hands

He has hands

 _The darkness is on his chest, the defeat was too good to be true, the hammer falls_

His arm.

Breathe in breathe out breathe in breathe out

It's too rhythmic.

He's not doing it

He panics and hears a commotion that feels like it's coming from far away

Shouting

Beeping

He's choking

Breathe in breathe out breathe in breathe out

Somehow he's choking

His eyes fly open and the soft darkness is replaced by the harsh light

Something had been shoved down his throat, as his eyes adjusted he frantically grabbed for the tube coming out of his mouth but only one of his hands responded. He was making panicked noises and was becoming more agitated by the moment. A soft hand landed on top of the one wrapped around the breathing tube. The unbelievably loud orchestra of beeps from around his bed started to slow as a look of recognition crossed his face.

"Hey" The slender blonde with the faint scar across her cheek sat down on the bed. "Welcome home Hardy, I knew you wouldn't give up on me."

She hit the call nurse button but one was already halfway through the door, having heard the commotion from the hallway.

Bewildered, Frank looked around mistrustfully.

"Aww hunny did you just wake up?" The cheery nurse was too loud "I've gotcha sweetie pie you just lay back and try not to bite my fingers off mmmkay?" she laughed at her own joke as Frank drew farther into his pillows. Only a look from Nancy kept him from doing anything or moving while the nurse almost made him throw up as she pulled the tube past his gag reflex.

"Not tah worry there darling, I've been puked on before" she yammered as he tried to stifle his gagging. "I'll just getchyer feeding tube out too and set you up with sommore meds which you will probably love hahahahahaha" and before he knew it she was gone and he was free and alone with Nancy.

Before he had to ask, Nancy had put a huge cup of water in his hands and had started pushing the adjustable buttons on his bed so he could sit up.

"Slowly though buddy or it will be back before you know it"

He tried to listen to her advice but it felt like he hadn't had anything to drink in weeks. He coughed and sputtered on his first couple gulps and then got control of himself. A longer curl wound itself down over his forehead while he was drinking and before she knew what she was doing, Nancy's hands were in his hair, smoothing it down as he drank. Frank froze mid swig and slowly lowered the cup, his eyes locked on Nancy's the whole time. Her hand was still in his hair. Frank swallowed as he realized how close her bed adjustment had put their faces. Her hand curled around his ear as she tangled her fingers through his thick wavy tresses

"Hi" he whispered. Her face broke into a dazzling grin. "Hi" she whispered back, overcome with joy, sparkling out of every pore. Frank was back and nothing had ever felt so perfect.

"HI" a third voice snapped through the magic of the moment.

Frank looked over and saw his least favourite guy standing in the doorway, two cups of coffee in his hands.

Nancy's hand slid out of his hair and rested casually on his shoulder.

"We need to call his family!" she directed this statement to Ned as though Frank wasn't there.

"Yeah" Ned replied tersely

Her lip trembled as she looked back

"Frank I'm sure you have so many questions, but I should call your family- they would want to know you're awake."

Something finally clicked for him as she got up to ostensibly go call his family

He grabbed her hand

"W…wait, why aren't they here?"

 _Nancy's cut was a scar_

"Why are you here?"

 _His hair was long enough for her fingers to get caught in_

"How long have I been here?!"

"Three months, _pal_ " muttered Nickerson from the corner, looking equal parts forlorn and angry.

Frank was too shocked to be upset. "In a co…coma" he stuttered.

"What else would it be" Ned's snarky comment was met by a glare from Nancy, "Go call his family please, Ned" she said as she sat back down on Frank's bed and turned her back on her boyfriend. Ned stepped into the hall and Nancy met Frank's alarmed gaze.

"You'll probably have about 20 minutes before they can get here, is that enough?" He was looking pretty shell shocked and she didn't want to send him back.

"Yeah… should be…." He looked up at Nancy apologetically "can we get Nickerson to leave though? I can't handle him here"

Nancy flushed, nodded and stepped into the hallway for a moment. Frank took the few minutes she was gone to collect himself. A coma. What had he missed? He took inventory of his body and started to panic as he realised that not everything had healed properly.

His anxiety was interrupted by Nancy and Ned in the hallway. He could hear some heated hissing from the hallway and a "Come on! I saw-" from Ned that was cut off by a curt word from Nancy. Frank watched a shadow stalk past his window towards the exit as Nancy walked back in, a bright smile on her face but the heightened colour in her cheeks betraying the emotional interchange she had just had.

She sat at the foot of his bed and stared at him in incredulity "I can't believe you're back"

"So three months eh?"

"yeah"

"Nan?"

"Yeah?"

He swallowed as he asked the question he'd been dreading. "What's wrong with my hand?"

"Oh!" she leapt up and sped around the bed to where his injured hand lay. She lifted it gently and sat next to him where it had just been resting, pulling his hand onto her lap. He could feel her touching it, which was a relief. "They had to do surgery to repair it and you just haven't moved it in three months or been able to do the physio that it needed. You should still have function, it will just take a lot of work. Want to try me moving it?"

"Is that going to mess me up for when my family gets here?" he asked apprehensively.

"Absolutely not" she assured him with a smile and gently started massaging his hand into movement.

She was wrong. She was not a doctor and the pain was excruciating but Frank could not bring himself to stop her. He sat there, quietly in pain, while she told him about the last three months.

He really had heard Joe that night in the storage locker place. Joe had assumed that Frank would never have texted an LOL and apparently Wade had included a peach emoji after the text to represent a butt. Joe tracked his and Nancy's phones and when Nancy didn't pick up hers he called in reinforcements, although they arrived too late to save Frank from a coma. In a search of the place they found 18 people who had been held without food or water in a storage unit and were being sold by Brigitta. She had gotten life without parole in prison as there had been quite an international case stacked against her, and Frank's coma had helped extend the sentences of her accomplices.

Nancy left out the fact that she and Joe had still been working the case while he was in a coma. The fact that they had been caught so off-guard with the appearance of Brigitta didn't sit well with Nancy or Joe. They had decided to keep investigating, but Nancy was worried that if she told Frank she could overwhelm him or that he would try to get back into the field too soon.

Nancy mercifully let go of Frank's hand as his family came in. She slipped out quietly with a smile as she watched Fenton and Laura fuss over their son. Joe was ecstatic to see Frank but his keen detective eye saw Nancy slip out and he followed her into the hallway.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"I'm not going to intrude on your family moment Joe, I'll catch up with you later…"

"I saw the second cup of coffee on the window ledge is still sealed shut. Ned took off early eh?"

Nancy shot him a look "Joe, your brother just woke up from a COMA. I'm not doing this in the hallway with you"

She turned and walked away

"you're coming back though right?" He called after her "Nancy?... Nan?"

She threw up a sarcastic peace sign as she pushed open the exit and walked into the sun.

"Kay see you in the office tomorrow then!" he called after her

Joe shook his head and turned back to his family.


	5. Chapter 5

The heater in Ned's truck was blasting hot air when Nancy climbed in after leaving the Hardy family reunion in the hospital. The blonde haired pair stared silently forward until Nancy cleared her throat and finally addressed the conversation they had left un-had for the last three months.

"I'm sorry"

Nancy could tell she had caught Ned off guard by the way the chill radiating off him lessened. The last thing he had been expecting was an apology.

They turned to face each other as she continued.

"I know the last three months have been so so hard; I've been short-tempered and distant and unkind. But I can't even explain it Ned. If Frank had… had… d…"

At this Nancy started to cry and Ned fished for Kleenex in the driver's-side door and handed them to Nancy. She took a few deep shuddering breaths into the tissues and mopped at her eyes to compose herself.

"Ned, if Frank had died…. I don't know if I ever would have forgiven myself"

At this Nancy was overrun by the sobs she had been holding back for months that were accompanied by a case of hysterical hiccoughs. Ned reached over to pull her head to his shoulder and the tears ran down his old letterman jacket that had been his signature even years after they had graduated college. Nancy felt herself calm a bit as the smell of the leather brought back a flood of memories of the great times she and Ned had spent together. They had been together for nearly eight years but this was by far the hardest point of their relationship.

They stayed like that until Nancy's hiccoughing subsided.

"So you've been feeling guilty this whole time?" he finally ventured.

After a slight pause Nancy mutely nodded into his leather clad shoulder.

Nancy felt an exhale on the top of her head and Ned pushed her back gently so he could look into her eyes.

"Nan I've been such an ass. I was so worried about us but I never stopped to think what you might have been feeling. I thought you were falling in love with the guy- I guess I hadn't realized that I could ever lose you and I was so upset about it."

She buried her head back into his shoulder

"I love you Nan, you know that right?"

She nodded mutely again and pulled back to wipe the last few tears that were determined to escape her eyes.

He looked at her for a second before patting her on the knee, whispering "okay then" and putting the truck into drive. He felt calmer than he had since he had gotten the teary phone call from the hospital the day of the injury and, in his relief, missed the shadow passing over Nancy's face as she turned to look out the window as he pulled out of the hospital parking lot.

As the trees passed by while Ned drove Nancy home she was left with a bad taste in her mouth. It was no secret that Ned and Frank had never been fond of each other, but Ned had been borderline cruel to a man who had been in a coma for three months. And while Nancy would never call Ned controlling she had not liked the way he had been so jealous and upset when he saw her and Frank together or how he had resented the time she had been spending in the hospital by his side. She couldn't shake the feeling that Ned would prefer that she never see her friend again. But Nancy was, and had always been, a peacekeeper. For better or worse Ned was appeased and the peace had been restored by Nancy keeping a lot of things unsaid. It had been a hard three months on everyone but that day the first seeds of doubt that had been growing in Nancy's heart for a while were acknowledged. Could she make it work with a man like Ned?


	6. Chapter 6

Nancy woke up from the deepest sleep she had had in three months. Warm yellow light filtered into her room through the leaves of the red maple outside her window and she felt disoriented as she searched bewilderedly for her alarm clock. Where was….oh! It's on the floor. She picked up her clock and stared stupidly at it as she tried to make sense of the numbers. Why was the sun up at 3am? OH! 3pm! Nancy got tangled in her blankets and she tumbled the floor after trying to spring to her feet. How could she have slept for so long? She had to be late for something!

Nancy was frantically trying to excavate herself from the tangled heap on the floor when she heard a soft knock and Hannah popped her head in the door.

"Nancy? Oh good you're awake. What on earth are you doing?" Hannah's soft green eyes took in her panicked charge as she walked into the room and knelt beside her.

"Hannah! I'm late! How did I sleep so long! Why didn't you wake me?" Her hands, still heavy with sleep, were pulling at her sheet to no avail.

Hannah made a soft shhhh sound and pulled Nancy's soft golden head to her breast "Sweetheart calm down, it's Saturday. There's nothing to be late for."

After a moment of squirming Nancy finally relaxed. She thought she had cried out everything in the car with Ned yesterday but the minute she relaxed into Hannah's arms the tears bubbled up from inside her and she went absolutely limp. She was home and safe and he would live. She was finally letting the stress go.

Hannah sat on the floor, cradling a sobbing Nancy and taking in the state of the room she had been barred from for the last three months. She could faintly make out a round worn out spot in the carpet that had not been there four months before; worn by distracted feet in the middle of the night.

Hannah was overjoyed with the news of the Hardy boy's recovery. She had been watching powerless as her sweet girl got thinner and thinner and there had been no laughter in the house since the boy's accident. She and Mr. Drew had been tiptoeing past the door on the second floor which was closed more than it was open for the first time ever. They had been speaking in hushed whispers and watching each other grow greyer and more wrinkled as time wore on. There had been a fair share of tragedy in the house due to the nature of Nancy and Mr. Drew's work but there had never been a response like this to any accident.

Hannah had been a week away from sending Nancy to a therapist or force-feeding the girl (maybe both) when they got the phone call from the Hardy's. Nancy had been there when he woke up and Hannah had expected the old Nancy to walk through the door, smiling, bubbling over like her happy self, and all in all, healed. She had walked in without so much as a word, walked directly to her room and (Hannah verified later) had fallen into a deep sleep the minute her head had hit the pillow.

That poor, sweet lamb. Nancy was not her daughter but she loved her as though she were and had never felt as powerless as she did watching Nancy spiral.

Nearly a half hour later, Hannah felt Nancy's sobs start to slow down and she sat up on her own.

"Thanks Hannah, I don't know what has come over me."

Hannah kissed her forehead. "It's finally over, angel."

Later Hannah would have a conversation with her about why she was this upset over Frank when she had been calm cool and collected when a decision she made had caused Ned to be kidnapped and beat up. Now, however, was not the time.

"Did I miss anything while I was asleep?"

"George and Bess both called because they heard about Frank. They also wanted to know if you're free tomorrow. They're on their way home so they can see him. Joe also called to see why you weren't at the office but I told him to buzz off and you would be back on Monday."

This elicited the first chuckle from Nancy in far too long. "Hannah if you did actually say the words 'buzz off' I will be very impressed"

"Anything for you, Nan. Do you feel up to showering?" a small nod "You shower and when you're done come downstairs to the kitchen and I'll have something ready for you to eat."

"You're an angel, Hannah."

Hannah just smiled and kissed her Nancy on the head before heading downstairs to make her girl her most fattening food.

A macaroni and cheese casserole complete with little sausages ought to put a little meat back on those too-thin bones.

Nancy just stood and let the hot water flow over her body with her eyes closed. She felt completely empty after having cried but for the first time since the accident it was a peaceful kind of empty. The sun had finally broken through the clouds.

She stayed in the shower until the water started to cool down and was startled to find she was ravenous. She didn't bother brushing her hair but twisted it into a knot in the towel on her head and followed her nose to the kitchen while wearing only her housecoat and slippers.

Hannah was beyond satisfied to see that Nancy asked for thirds and eventually fourths, eating so quickly that she burned her tongue on the first plate of casserole. She felt a very maternal sense of accomplishment seeing her casserole devoured so greedily and seeing the colour that had returned to Nancy's cheeks.

It was only uphill from here.


	7. Chapter 7

Frank stood looking out the window as the sun came up, peeking through spaces in the heavily clouded sky. It was so strange seeing all the trees that had been green and thriving when he had 'fallen asleep' were holding onto the last of their red and yellow leaves, the rest having fallen long ago. He had spent all of Saturday with his parents and though he loved them was relieved for the peace and quiet to process what he had been through. Three months of his life just gone. How strange.

A piercing pain in his left temple distracted him for a second but was gone as quickly as it had come. The doctor had said that there would probably be lingering side effects but he had no idea as to the intensity or duration of them as every brain was different. It seemed Frank was doomed to these pains for the foreseeable future.

He turned his attention back to what he had been doing before he had been distracted by the sunrise; trying to pick up the coffee cup on the windowsill with his bad hand. It was just a paper cup left by one of his family members but it was all he could handle right now. His hand was incredibly stiff and painful as he forced himself to wrap his hand around the cup. The physiotherapist had come and gone, warning Frank not to overdo it but giving him a list of exercises to complete three times a day. Picking up a coffee cup was not on the list but how much harm could a coffee cup really do, Frank reasoned?

He walked back towards his bed, starting as he had ever since he had woken up, while passing the mirror. A former football player, Frank had always been a big guy. He was used to seeing his tall frame with a generous coating of muscle and cleanly cut hair. The face that looked back at him was considerably skinnier, and had a very out-of-character head of shaggy hair. The minute he had permission from his doctors he would be about bringing that person back out of the stranger he was trapped inside. He had never felt so weak before. He turned his attention to his hair. Maybe this look wasn't so bad. With a comb and a bit of gel he could make it work. The back of his brain made him recall the feeling of soft, feminine fingers brushing it back from his forehead and he decided both consciously and sub-consciously to keep the hair.

Without consciously making the connection in his thought process he thought about Nancy. She didn't come visit him yesterday. She had no obligation, he supposed, but had been startled by one of the nurses after his family had gone home.

"I didn't see your girlfriend today." A chubby redheaded nurse said as she helped him get ready for bed the night before.

"My what?"

"Your girlfriend"

"I don't have a girlfriend"

"Wow, really? You've been my patient the whole time you've been here and I've never been wrong about this. I've accidentally caught myself a cheating husband or two just by guessing. So if she's not your girlfriend then who is that pretty blonde thing, Nancy I think, that was here every day? A cousin?"

Something in Frank made him turn red at the thought of being related to Nancy. "What? No. She's just a friend. Didn't you see her boyfriend?"

"I thought that was your brother? Joe?"

"Joe is my brother- Ned is her boyfriend." Why was he telling a stranger this? That blow to the head must still be affecting him.

"Oh. How strange. She seems like a good and faithful friend then."

"She is" he had said, mostly to himself.

Frank looked at the clock, shaking himself free of the memory. It was eight in the morning and visiting hours started at 10. They had made exception for his parents the first night he was awake and let them sleep on cots around his bed but he was sure that they would be back today as soon as the doors opened. His mother had wept openly when she saw he was awake and functioning. It was exhausting and a little bit confusing for him as in his mind he had seen them the week before but he could hardly begrudge them their time with him. From what he had gotten from Joe when his parents had gone for dinner was that everyone had assumed he would die. How strange Joe had not mentioned Nancy to him.


	8. Chapter 8

10:00 came and passed with no visitors. At 11 his mother rang him to let him know that they had to do things like grocery shopping and other things that had been neglected while he was in a coma but would be in to see him for dinner. He could hear the strain in his mother's voice as she obviously would rather be there with him.

"I look forward to it Ma, it's okay- they're taking me in for extra therapy this afternoon so you would just be sitting in my room by yourself waiting if you came."

It was a lie but it reassured her and Frank settled into his bed to catch up on what had happened in sports while he was out but within five minutes of turning on the TV he was fast asleep.

He was woken about 2 hours later by a soft hand on his shoulder, trying desperately not to startle him, but he was startled anyway by two wide smiles grinning down at him.

"Hey Frank! Remember us?"

George had always had a problem with using her indoor voice and it was quite a start for Frank

"George! Can't you see you're scaring him? Back up!" Her shorter, blonder cousin commanded, ignoring her own advice and moving her too close face that much closer.

She started talking to him as she would a child, covering his hand with hers. "Hey sweetie how are you feeling?"

"MMM George, Bess. Hi." Frank said, trying to gain his bearings and pull back a little into his pillows to escape Bess's intense blue stare.

"WE BROUGHT YOU SO MUCH STUFF" George was really excited and started pulling things out of a shiny red backpack he hadn't noticed. Books, candy bars, and even an old-school Gameboy fell onto his bed as Bess started tying balloons to his bedframe.

He was feeling slightly overwhelmed when a soft chuckle cut through his thoughts. Nancy was standing at the foot of his bed holding a plate of cupcakes that were obviously and blessed-ly Hannah-made. In her other hand she was holding a cup with the logo of the Shaggy Dog, which happened to be his favourite coffee place and (he knew) on the opposite side of town.

"Nancy!" his face flushed a little "I'm sorry- these girls were so out of control I didn't see you"

That brought an outburst of protest from the girls who were currently shaking the red bag upside down to make sure there was nothing left inside and rearranging his pillows into a much more uncomfortable stack.

Nancy rewarded him with a genuine, twinkling smile and walked forward to sit on the side of his mattress near his thigh. "I suppose anyone would get lost between these two. You are forgiven."

The cousins exchanged a look over Frank's head and suddenly became very interested with the view out his window, leaving the pair in the relative privacy of the corner while they went to look.

Nancy surrendered her offering of coffee and started taking the plastic wrap off the cupcakes that were coloured in his preferred shade of blue.

"Don't worry- it's decaf. The doctors were very insistent about that" she said with a chuckle.

"Ah yes. Caffeine is very high up on the no-fun list that I'm pretty sure they're going to tattoo onto my body if I can't recite it back to them by tomorrow."

This elicited a genuine laugh from Nancy that made Frank's stomach do a flip-flop.

"Try the coffee- they still have their fall flavours in stock. This one is pumpkin spice something something."

Frank pulled a face involuntarily, still feeling strange about having missed an entire season. Nancy misinterpreted it.

"You don't like it." She reached out to take it back but Frank pulled it out of her reach.

"What are you doing? This is my gift, you can't take it back." With that he pulled a trick she had pulled a thousand times on stakeouts- bringing the coffee to his mouth and licking the entire rim.

Nancy laughed again

"Then what was that face for?"

The smile that had been on his lips fell a little as he tried to think of a way to explain to her what he was going through. He was interrupted, however by the return of Bess and George who seemed to think they had given the two enough private time.

"Frank your view kind of sucks"

"Yeah, who wants to look at a parking lot?"

Frank swung his legs over the side of his bed away from Nancy.

"I guess they didn't really care about the view of the room for the guy in a coma…" He meant it as a joke but it fell flat as the girls didn't know whether to laugh or not.

"Oh. Frank we didn't mean it like that…"

Nancy interrupted "Girls come help Frank eat these cupcakes or Hannah is going to murder me. She left direct instructions that the plate should come back completely empty, or else."

"Nan you know you can just leave some cupcakes behind" Bess was very carefully watching her figure but picked up a cupcake anyways

"Where's the fun in that, Bess?"

Frank turned back into his pillows and obediently munched away while Bess and George tried to catch him up on everything he had missed while in a coma. He had noticed it yesterday with his parents but he was finding himself more easily confused and forgetful, making listening to Bess and George's multi-layered and somewhat abstract stream of information very difficult to follow.

"…. Paul- the one I went to senior prom with"

"Junior prom"

"No! George you weren't there- it was his senior prom"

"No- Bess you were a senior and went to his junior prom"

"Oh yeah. Well anyway he married that really tall girl last month"

"Bess that's his sister"

"Oh wait! Frank it was the short girl with the tall best friend that you had a crush on when that millionaire pretended that his groundskeeper had stolen that one huge emerald"

"I thought the groundskeeper inherited that emerald and the son was mad and stole it"

Frank was feeling a pressure headache building behind his eyes as they rattled on and on.

Their rambling was interrupted by a laughing Nancy.

"Bess, Paul was your date to our senior winter wonderland dance, his sister is Molly and she was best friends with Candace who Frank asked to _his_ junior prom when he was here to help us find the ruby that the housekeeper stole from the son of the millionaire. Frank, the moral of this story is that you missed a wedding you were not invited to anyway. Girls I think we should go- I think Frank could use a break from us."

"But Nan, we're only here until tomorrow!"

"And we only just got here!"

"We got here two hours ago and you know it, Bess"

At that moment Frank could not keep his face from contorting into a grimace of pain as he had another one of his shooting pains in his temple. The girls saw this and fell silent.

He opened his eyes to see three solemn faces staring back at him.

"Girls can you give me a minute with Frank?" Nancy asked quietly

They quickly gathered their things and kissed Frank on the cheek, closing the door behind them as they left.

"Nan, it's nothing-" Frank started but before he could even finish, Nancy's hands were on either side of his head and she was searching his eyes intensely. He found himself unable to speak as Nancy made her impromptu medical exam.

She turned his head to the side and pushed back his hair to examine the scar that started behind his left ear and wrapped around the back of his head.

"Are you in a lot of pain? Has this been happening a lot? Do the doctors know? Is it just like a stabbing pain or a deep, throbbing pain?"

He pulled (or awkwardly pushed with is bad hand) her hands away from his face and turned to face her with her hands sort of sandwiched in between his on his lap.

"Calm down, Nancy. It's not that bad. You know I was in a coma and side-effects are common. This is normal"

Her face was still tortured as she sat down on his bed. Her hands were still in his.

"But you're in pain"

"Well I did have a pretty traumatic head injury."

She couldn't look at him

"I suppose you did"

He dipped his head, trying to make her look at him

"Hey. Nan… Nan. Look at me. What's going on."

She finally looked up; blue eyes wide and started talking too fast.

"I need to say it at least once. Frank, I am so so so sorry. I should have had your back that day and I was so focused on everything except for you. We were partners and I let you down and I. I…."

Her eyes welled up and she silently cursed herself. How did she have any tears left?

Frank felt a twinge in the area of his stomach. Oh. So she had been feeling guilty that he was in the hospital and that's why she had come to see him every day. That made a lot more sense than what he had been allowing himself to believe. He supposed if their roles were reversed he would be feeling the same.

He let go of her hands and wiped at the tears slipping from her eyes with his good thumb.

"I appreciate what you're saying Nancy but you know it's not necessary. That's the job- we both know that"

"I know, I know, it's just-"

"It's just nothing. The only one responsible for me being here is the asshole who hit me, alright?"

A moment's hesitation

"alright."

Frank was feeling somewhat deflated and the pain in his head was making him grumpy.

"I don't want to push you out or anything Nan, but I think you were right and I could use a break before my parents come back."

Nancy was a little startled by that

"Oh! Right! Of course! Let me just grab my stuff and I'll get out of your hair." She hurried around his bed to grab the plate George had left on the floor and then stood paralyzed for a moment trying to figure out how to wish him farewell. Cheek kiss? Wave? She ended up giving him a rushed handshake and a quick 'feel better!' before flying out of the room, never having felt so abruptly dismissed by Frank in her life. She was pondering this as she ran smack into a stocky but well-muscled chest that was owned by none-other than Joe Hardy.

"Well I'll be! I didn't think you'd be coming in today as Hannah had you pretty much on lockdown"

Nancy managed a weak laugh but was obviously distracted as she said "I've gotten out of tougher situations before" and started walking past Joe. He grabbed her arm to stop her.

"Holy, Nan, what's going on? Is he okay? Did you have a bad visit?... Are those Hannah cupcakes?" He genuinely cared about his friend but the youngest Hardy had not eaten lunch on account of his parents sending him to every corner of town on errands and had been planning on grabbing some vending machine treats. Next to the promise of a cupcake by Hannah, any snack he could procure seemed more like garbage than food.

Nancy wordlessly handed over the plate which had three cupcakes left on it and moved slightly robotically to a bench near a window.

"I don't know what has happened to me, Joe." She spoke as Joe unwrapped his second cupcake, not considering for a second that he might be able to savor it more if he slowed down. "He told me not to feel guilty about him being in the hospital but then asked me to leave in his next breath. I know it doesn't sound like a big deal but I just have never felt unwelcome with Frank before."

Joe nearly choked on the last bite of his cupcake.

"Wait a second. Frank. Franklin J. Hardy kicked Nancy Drew out of his bedroom? That can't be real."

"Joe! This isn't a joke! I think he might actually be upset with me about what happened."

"There's no way that's it."

"I'd be upset if it were me."

"No you wouldn't and he's not either. Don't worry Nancy. I'll figure out what's going on. Can I take this?" He picked up the last cupcake with his left hand as he licked icing off the fingers of his right.

Nancy nodded her assent and got up slowly.

"Don't ask, Joe. If he has something against me he can bring it up himself."

"Fine but if you guys don't figure it out in a week I'm doing it for you."

"Whatever. I'll see you tomorrow, Joe."

"Yeah."

She started to walk away.

"Wait, Nancy?" She stopped and turned.

"You know it's not actually your fault though, right"

"Yeah. Good night Joe."

"It's 3:00."

"I don't care." And with that she walked out of the hospital. Not realizing she was leaving her two friends behind.

Joe burst into the door of room 437 without so much as knocking.

Frank, who was standing by the window watching a solitary blonde headed woman getting into a really old blue car, turned at the interruption.

Joe held up the blue cupcake in his hand. "Guess who I ran into? Boy, you've got some explaining to do."

He closed the door behind him as he went to sit expectantly on his older brother's bed.


	9. Chapter 9

Nancy turned her cell phone off and drove directly to the river after leaving the hospital.

She walked now along the well-worn trail that was lined with the Miller's forest on one side and her beloved river on the other. She was walking faster than normal and didn't stop until she reached 'her spot'. It was a place where the river pooled over into a marshy area that was completely surrounded by trees on all sides and, since it was relatively sheltered from the wind, most of the trees still had the majority of their leaves. Most people didn't make it that far up the trail, preferring to go downstream towards the boathouse and harbour than to venture upstream to the woods. Nancy had come to this place with her father when she was very small and he would tell her stories of her mother. She now came to this place when she needed to think or escape or had a really difficult case that she couldn't work out. When she was absolutely sure she was alone sometimes she would talk out loud, as though she were talking to her mother.

Nancy had no words today but went to a hollow tree, pulled out a waterproof bag, produced a well-worn blanket and merely sat on a stone, wrapped in the blanket, staring out at the water.

She had a pit in her stomach that refused to go away but could not figure out the reason for it. She had been the one to suggest that Frank needed a break and they should leave. There was no logical reason to be upset that Frank had asked her to go. Sure it was slightly abrupt but the boy had a head trauma and was in pain. Anyone would want to be alone after a meeting with Bess and George.

Ugh. Her emotions had been all over the place the last couple days.

She wrapped herself a little tighter in the blanket that had been her mother's as a chilly November gust pushed past the blockade of trees and wrapped its icy fingers around her.

Deep breath, Nancy. She commanded herself. Clear your mind.

She spent a few moments meditating before her mind started to wander.

It wandered to her fingers and the memory of them being wrapped in a thick head of chestnut hair.

Stop, Nancy.

Clear your mind.

And it slipped to a memory of realizing his eyes had little flecks of gold in their chocolatey depths even as she searched for signs of a concussion or ruptured pupil or anything.

STOP, Nancy.

She opened her eyes in frustration. He had been nearly every waking thought for the last three months. Was she expecting it to just stop when he woke up?

BREATHE, Nancy.

The feeling of her hands in his. STOP. The flush in his cheeks when he saw her. GODDAMMIT.

This didn't feel normal.

Nancy audibly sighed. Wishing, not for the first time, that her mom was there with her.

There was a real question here that she needed to face at last. Was she in love with Frank, or was she just feeling guilty? Ned occupied the smallest corner of her mind which was consumed with thoughts of Frank. It should be the other way around. She closed her eyes and indulged herself for a moment with that memory of how Frank's face had flushed as he saw her through the cloud of Bess and George. Could that mean that he….?

Wait.

Bess.

George.

"SHIT" was heard by nothing but the wind as she stuffed her blanket in the waterproof bag, bag back in the tree and started jogging back to her car, thankful she was wearing her running shoes.


End file.
